BRIDGEPORT — Earlier this decade, bath salts were the scourge of North Central West Virginia, with a head shop in Clarksburg at its epicenter.

Today, there’s a new manmade drug a lot like bath salts that’s starting to pop up on the radar. And this time, instead of standing in long lines at a counter, “customers” are buying the illegal drug flakka (alpha-PVP) by ordering it from other countries via what’s known as the “Dark Web.”

Flakka still isn’t the source of angst for authorities that methamphetamine is, but it’s quickly becoming a major concern, according to the commander of the Greater Harrison Drug and Violent Crimes Task Force.

“We’ve become concerned enough about it,” as have federal High Intensity Drug Trafficking Program Area officials, “that we have people doing ‘Dark Web’ training,” said the commander, a Bridgeport police lieutenant.

“It hit us out of the blue,” said the commander, who was a central player in the effort to shutter the bath salts-distributing head shop in 2012.

The commander added that he isn’t aware of any overdose deaths in the region yet from flakka.

However, both the commander and Bridgeport Police Chief John Walker, who’s commander of the task force’s control board, noted that individuals under the influence of flakka act quite erratically.

“The worst thing about this, people seem to lose control of their mobility, their body function ... and it gives them the feeling they have the strength of the Incredible Hulk,” Walker said. “Certainly anyone in the area of anyone on flakka has great concern for their own safety because of the way they’re acting.”

Added the Drug Task Force commander: Those using it exhibit “very irrational behavior. People exhibit a demonic-possession sort of thing; just profuse sweating, irrational talk, their body movements are just nonstop — just constant fidgeting times a thousand.”

Flakka is eaten, snorted, injected or vaporized in e-cigarettes, according to a Drug Enforcement Administration posting. The DEA reports the drug is “typically white or pink in color, and is found in crystal form.” Its street name is “Gravel,” and it causes “paranoia and hallucinations that may lead to violent aggression and self-injury,” plus “overdose and death have been linked to the use of this drug,” according to the DEA.

Walker estimates there have been about six reports of flakka use in Harrison County over about the past half year. Harrison Sheriff Robert Matheny, a member of the Task Force control board, said they’re seeing some flakka in the area, but it still isn’t as popular as methamphetamine or heroin.

The last instance involved someone who was arrested and brought to the police station, Walker said.

“He was all messed up on it. ... He was just kind of out of control, you know, thrashing around, can’t carry on a conversation.”

The commander of the Drug and Violent Crimes Task Force noted that flakka is very similar to bath salts — “basically it’s just a different name for what we went through before.”

He added that China and other countries “that have very little regulation on it” are exporters.

The No. 1 concern for the Task Force, though, remains meth.

“It’s nuts,” the commander said.

In a recent case, “a guy who couldn’t put two pennies together this time last year, now he’s got access to 20 to 30 pounds of ‘Ice,’” the commander said, referring to the street name for methamphetamine.

Clarksburg Police Chief Robert Hilliard, also a member of the Task Force control board, said they’ve only seen one incidence of flakka. Meth, however, is “on the increase,” Hilliard said. “That’s what we’re seeing the most of; that’s overtaking the heroin.”

Methamphetamine is a stimulant, according to the DEA. The federal agency reports that “Mexican drug trafficking organizations have become the primary manufacturers and distributors of methamphetamine to cities throughout the United States, including in Hawaii. Domestic clandestine laboratory operators also produce and distribute meth but usually on a smaller scale. The methods used depend on the availability of precursor chemicals.”

“Those who smoke or inject it report a brief, intense sensation, or rush. Oral ingestion or snorting produces a long-lasting high instead of a rush, which reportedly can continue for as long as half a day,” the DEA reports.

“Both the rush and the high are believed to result from the release of very high levels of the neurotransmitter dopamine into areas of the brain that regulate feelings of pleasure. Long-term meth use results in many damaging effects, including addiction,” the DEA reports.

“Chronic meth users can exhibit violent behavior, anxiety, confusion, insomnia, and psychotic features including paranoia, aggression, visual and auditory hallucinations, mood disturbances, and delusions — such as the sensation of insects creeping on or under the skin,” the DEA reports. “Such paranoia can result in homicidal or suicidal thoughts.”

Walker added that “meth is a readily available drug in North Central West Virginia.”

“The effects of this drug last 4 to 8 hours. It is considered as one of the most dangerous, addictive, and damaging drugs anyone can take. It often times causes one to become violent making them more dangerous in our community,” Walker said.

“The more the drug is used, the more dependent the individual becomes. It is imperative all law enforcement officers stay vigilant of their surroundings to identify the individuals high on meth to better protect our community,” Walker said.

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